TNs: '96 Dominique Laurent NSG, others

[Michael Malinoski]

Here are some brief notes on wines served at dinner with the in-laws recently.

2013 Adega Coop. de Ponte de Lima Loureiro Vinho Verde. This is crisp, compact and crunchy on the nose, showing coiled, piquant aromas of steel, quinine, herb, honeydew melon and citrus. In the mouth, it’s very dry and squeaky-clean, with a narrow beam of light-bodied mineral, herb, salt, smoke and lime flavors. It’s a simple but pleasant wine that calls out for food.

2013 Bodegas El Coto Rioja Rosado. This has an outgoing, juicy, berry-laden bouquet featuring aromas of strawberry, raspberry, toasted orange peel, smoke and herb. It’s similarly outgoing in the mouth, with vibrant and zesty flavors of strawberry, raspberry, smoke and mineral. It’s palate-cleansing, tangy and pleasingly dry-finishing.

2005 Inman Family Pinot Gris "Blonde" Late Harvest Olivet Grange Vineyard Russian River Valley. There are fine, mellow aromas here of white peach, yellow apple, melon, lemon peel and light honey that are perhaps a bit tame at this stage but still nicely enticing. It’s subtly sweet in the mouth, with the acidity receding to the background while the sucrosity comes forward over time. It’s a bit short and simple on the finish, but there’s still a good deal of pleasing peach, apple, light brown sugar and shortbread flavors that pair very nicely with our curried butternut squash soup. Everyone really enjoyed it, but it needs to be drunk up soon.

1996 Dominique Laurent Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Les Chaignots. This is a cloudy ruby-colored wine, smelling delightfully of smoked black cherry fruit, forest undergrowth, black tea leaves, tree bark, mushrooms and potting soil. It’s serious all around, but with sexy dark spice edgings, dark savory earth tones and plush fruit aromas that are compelling in many ways. In the mouth, it’s tangy and juicy, but dark and serious--with sour cherry, plum and earth flavors showing nice fleshy concentration despite acidity that is pretty aggressively forward. There’s still a good deal of structure and tannin to the wine, but it has nice length and a fine savory personality. This can certainly continue to age nicely, in my opinion.

2006 Jean-Marc Burgaud Morgon Côte du Py Vieilles Vignes. This wine features aromas of blackberries, raspberries, leather, limestone, ash and cracked pepper in a pleasingly lifted and lively package. In the mouth, it’s still pretty youthful and vigorous, with popping-fresh flavors of blue and black berry fruits, earth and herbs. It has a nice juicy core, but it’s seems serious-minded and structured, as well. I have no problems drinking it now, but I think it will be better still in another few years.


-Michael